Tris Gilland, Ed. S., BCBA Douglas County Schools

Tris Gilland, Ed. S., BCBA Douglas County Schools

Goals -Provide brief background and overview of Applied Behavior Analysis -Basic behavior management -Provide training to implement DTT -Learn data collection procedures -Learn to use data to make decisions

Provide hands on training and performance feedback during implementation of DTT programs Practice data collection Review graphing and decision making

Part 1 Applied Behavior Analysis

Scientific study of socially relevant behaviors Scientific study is guided by theory and philosophy *Behaviorism* Scientific study follows a logical problemsolving process A method for examining variables and determining progress with respect to a given set of goals

Applied Behavior Analysis -A method, for which behaviorism provides the theoretical underpinnings, for studying behavior of social significance, to better lives of those for whom it is utilized.

APPLIED: ABA focuses on the implementation of basic principles to behaviors of significance to the participants involved. BEHAVIORAL: ABA focuses on behavior in its own right as a target for change. -We change behavior in many different forms *Increase appropriate or educational skills *Decrease inappropriate or problematic skills

ANALYTIC: ABA seeks to identify functional relations between behavior and environmental events through scientific study. -We analyze situations so that we understand why behaviors are changing. TECHNOLOGICAL: In ABA, procedures are completely and precisely defined. -We are precise in our methods so we are confident in our outcomes.

GENERALIZED: Behavior analysts attempt to discover procedures that can be applied effectively in many settings and with many people. -Behavior analysts attempt to use procedures that promote generalization and maintenance of behavior change.

Has been called: -behavior modification -operant conditioning -behavioral analysis -consequence learning -etc

Within the autism community, Applied Behavior Analysis has been misrepresented as being synonymous with Discrete Trial Training (DTT), Lovaas therapy, incidental teaching, pivotal response training, and other teaching procedures.

Diverse field -Vast numbers of procedures -Vastly different problems are addressed No single approach -But common principles Data-based/Research proven results -What we do works and we collect data to be vigilant so that we may change the things that do not work

Part 2 Key Terms and Principles

Target behavior Antecedent events Consequent events Positive reinforcement Negative reinforcement Punishment

ABA is a method for studying behavior These principles apply to increasing appropriate behavior as well as decreasing inappropriate behaviors They can be relatively simple in scope They can be immensely complex

Behavior of interest Definition -Empirical Must be able to see the behavior to record it -Use terms to describe observable events, not mentalistic constructs Can t see feelings Can t observe states of mind

We need to define very precisely Precise definitions of terms and procedures lead to: -Accurate data collection which leads to -Reliable measurement which leads to -Confidence in clinical and educational decision making

Very simple behaviors can be difficult to define Stranger Test A description of behavior should be precise or descriptive enough so that a stranger could observe and determine if the response was or was not being demonstrated. Dead Man s Test Goals should convey what a child will do, not what a child will not do. If a dead man can meet the goal, it does not pass the test.

Acquisition The desired response Behavior management Examples:

Bad: loses control Better: cries and tantrums Best: cries and sobs, flops to the floor, kicks, pounds objects/fist on the floor, all of which is defined as a tantrum

Bad: doesn t listen Better: does not do what she is told Best: does not initiate compliance within 10 seconds of a staff request

Antecedents are things that occur prior to a target behavior (events that precede a behavior in time) Antecedents can help determine and control why a behavior is occurring If used consistently, can reliable predict a behavior

Antecedents can make behaviors occur -Occasion, set up, trigger There is always an antecedent Understanding antecedents can lead to behavior management and effective acquisition of skills

Present a non-preferred work demand *could precede aggression Take away a preferred toy *could precede crying

Skill acquisition to teach new skills -Present a cue, child responds, consequence follows Present some cue to the child -This will serve as the antecedent to the child s response -This cue will serve as a reliable predictor that a certain behavior, when demonstrated, will lead to the delivery of a preferred stimulus

A cue will serve as a stimulus that discriminates for preferred items if a certain behavior is demonstrated If Johnny hears touch blue when a blue block and a red block are present: touching blue will lead to a preferred item; touching red will not Touch blue is a cue that a certain response leads to a certain consequence

That type of antecedent event or cue has a technical name Discriminative Stimulus or Sd An Sd is used to provide a child with information about which response leads to reinforcement in the presence of which item An Sd can be verbal, pictorial, visual, or tangible

Consequences are things that occur following a target behavior (events that follow a behavior in time) Consequences can make behavior more or less likely to occur in the future Can include anything and everything that could possible occur following a target behavior

Can make behaviors Increase Decrease Stay the same There is always a consequence Understanding consequences can lead to effective behavior management and skill acquisition

Joey hits the teacher which produces Joey tantrums during meals which leads to Joey puts everything in his mouth which leads to Joey hits Johnny and Johnny walks away which gives Joey Joey cries loudly in the check-out line at Wal- Mart which leads to

After an Sd is followed by a response from a child, a teacher can deliver a consequence -praise -preferred items -preferred activity -corrective response -additional prompting Different consequences can have different effects on behavior

Antecedents Behaviors-Consequences All behaviors comply to the model A s and C s affect future behavior -some interactions increase behavior -some interactions decrease behavior

The addition of some stimulus condition following a behavior which results in the increase of that behavior in the future. The addition POSITIVE Increase REINFORCEMENT Positive reinforcement is defined by it s effect on behavior

George points to the truck when he hears point to truck Receives praise, hugs, high 5 s Continues to point to correct stimulus when presented in the future George does not point to truck anymore Was not positive reinforcement **Again, defined by it s effect on behavior

Jake hits another child You yell at him. *He hits more.what does that mean? Positive add something Reinforcement behavior increases in the future

Behaviors are reinforced Kids are not!! Reinforcers are those stimuli, that when provided contingent on a target behavior, increase that target behavior.

The removal or termination of some stimulus condition following a behavior which results in the increase in that behavior in the future The removal NEGATIVE Increase REINFORCEMENT Defined by it s effect on behavior

Chris is having a tantrum you give him a break from work A tantrum is more likely to occur in the future (negative reinforcement) A tantrum does not occur again (was not negative reinforcement) Defined by it s effect (increase) on behavior

Raining open umbrella removes rain Common stimuli that serve as reinforcers: breaks, changes in activity, work removal, avoiding social conflict, avoiding certain situations

Reinforcement increases behavior Punishment decreases behavior Addition (positive) or removal (negative) of a stimulus condition that results in the decrease in that behavior in the future *positive punishment *negative punishment

Some things to think about: -immediate -contingent -varied -satiation/deprivation -reinforcing for that individual

readily available easily consumable age appropriate fade to natural reinforcement as soon as possible provide behavior specific praise unpredictable and novel

Reinforcer assessment Ask parents Observe Ask the student!! Allow choice Paired choice Box of tricks

How long should he have access? -short amounts of time relative to work time -usually recommended 20 seconds or time to consume Should he choose after each trial or at the beginning of the session? -You choose, but be consistent.

Should he/she be able to access these items during free play time? -No, to avoid satiation, these items should only be available contingent on task completion. Do we have to use the same reinforcer for each compliance/long term? -Let the data determine this. -Is the response increasing?

Part 3 Prompting Strategies

Lease to most intrusive prompt hierarchy Always gives a chance for compliance Always prevents escape Students learn to comply earlier and earlier in the sequence Must follow through every time

Prompts -Many different kinds of prompts -Prompts assist learner through providing more information or move the goal within reach Placement Visual Verbal Prompt Position

Obtain or maintain attention Important (especially for new skills) Look at me Physically guide For some children, attention can be gained without eye contact. Give instruction (deliver cue) Do this. Point to. Match. Response 5 second average wait time (can vary depending on the student) Determine what you will count as correct/incorrect Consequence -Following prompting hierarchy -Provide reinforcement

No response within 5 seconds or incorrect responses are followed by following through with prompting hierarchies Correct responses are immediately followed by reinforcement -access to items -praise -primary reinforcers -tokens

Errorless Learning Prompting Sequence Verbal Gestural/model Physical AKA 3 step prompting Tell Show Do

Tasks require a verbal prompt Different kinds of verbal prompts: Partial verbal response ( r for red ) -deliver small amount of reinforcer Provide full model ( It s red. Say red. )

Deliver verbal prompts ( Sit down. ) **wait 5 seconds** Repeat verbal as a gesture/model is provided ( Sit down.. like this. /while sitting then standing again) **wait 5 seconds** Physical Guidance ( Sit down. /while physically guiding the child to the seat)

Part 4 Discrete Trial Training/Teaching

This is a style of teaching in which opportunities to respond (trials) are presented one at a time (discretely) so that the specific components are discernable to the learner, and so that an accurate recording of the learner s responses can be made. Most likely, you already use some form of this style of teaching. DTT emphasizes many commonly used techniques to produce a very powerful method of increasing skills.

Discrete trial small unit of instruction (usually) implemented in a 1:1 environment The most widely studied approach for teaching children with autism Surgeon general endorses DTT for children with autism

Trial -one individual learning sequence Session -several trials Program -one objective achieved through running multiple sessions

Obvious start and finish to each trial Tasks initially short then Motivation through reinforcement Stimulus control: clear, consistent, repetitive, less confusion Teaches new forms of behavior Teaches discrimination Promotes generalization since generalization can be directly addressed through different settings and situations (table top, small group, playground, anywhere)

Obtain attention (Very important) Deliver Sd (give instruction) Response Consequence Intertrial Interval

Present a clear, simple instruction or question Present only one instruction at a time (until ready to chain) Prompts can be used simultaneously or immediately following the instruction to assist with error correction (if needed) Sd for each program will be different Consistency is the key use the EXACT wording each and every time to avoid issues with acquisition and data collection

Following the Sd, the child will do something or not do something 5 seconds average wait time Correct or incorrect response is given Determine if correct/incorrect Either reinforce (immediately) or move through prompting sequence (corrective feedback)

Time between the end of one trial and the onset of the next trial Reinforcer consumption Prepare for next trial Data collection

The process to teach new behaviors can sometimes be very long We can set a number of sessions (or days) as a limit before looking at modifying a program Persistence is the key Can break the task into smaller units Is everyone teaching the same way?

Use short, simple instructions Evaluate response as correct/incorrect Prompt Reinforce immediately Record data

Prompt dependency Generalization must be programmed Labor intensive

Goal/criteria for mastery Materials needed Sd Definition of correct response (target behavior) Prompting procedure Steps for training

Always praise and/or otherwise reinforce correct responses (Even if it is something expected, others can learn from seeing others get reinforced.) Always give at least 5 seconds for the student to respond. Always plan out delivery before you start. -eliminates down time -get materials, know how many trials, seating arrangement Always ignore inappropriate behavior -Focus on the task -No verbal comments -Do not allow escape Keep task moving until complete Make yourself a reinforcing stimulus Try to end on a good note

Part 5 Generalization and Maintenance

When correct responses occur when stimuli are different than in training: Across people Across materials Across environments Across time Across responses

How might you plan for generalization? Can it happen on its own? After a skill is mastered with one set of stimuli present -run sessions with different people -in different areas -at different times

Maintenance is when correct responding persists without reinforcement in place Programming periodical review of mastered objectives If the behavior falls back to below 80% across 3 (or 5) consecutive sessions, put back into acquisition programming

Part 6 Data Collection

Baseline Treatment comparisons To monitor whether or not an intervention is working To monitor skill acquisition To monitor behavior To make changes to existing programs

There are several different data collection systems Different systems are used to most effectively record relevant information about a behavior -duration -frequency -interval

We are going to focus on 1!!! All correct responses must be operationally defined Baseline -measurement of skill prior to intervention -collect 3-5 baseline data points

Daily session data is monitored to evaluate progress, check for mastery, check for skill decrease Data should drive all programming decisions

Generally, a response will be recorded for each trial A + will be used to record a correct/incorrect response Record the type of prompting used to correct the response V = verbal; M/G = model/gesture; P = physical

Child s name Program Date Session number specific to the program Therapist Trial Criteria for Mastery Score Total correct Percentage correct (to be graphed)

Visual aid in decision making -trend (increase or decrease) -variability -accountability Make decisions about: -mastery of skill -moving to a new step (criteria) -moving a program to maintenance

Seek supervision Ask questions This can be a hugely complex undertaking Not expected to be perfect right away Everyone goes through a learning/comfort curve Practice with your team to make sure you are all on the same page It is ok to make mistakes Be consistent and organized

Part 6 Practice and Role Play

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Hodgdon, L. A. (1995). Visual strategies for improving communication: Practical supports for school and home. Troy, Michigan: QuirkRoberts Publishing. Maurice, C. (1996). Behavioral intervention for young children with autism. Austin, Texas: Pro-ed. Nkosi, A. J. (2008). Some handouts and slides adapted with permission from and inspired by BCBA supervision completed with Dr. Nkosi. Marietta, Georgia: Southern Behavioral Group. Partington, J.W., & Sundberg, M.L. (1998). The assessment of basic language and learning skills. Danville, CA: Behavior Analysts, Inc. Skinner, B.F. (1957). Verbal behavior. New York: Appleton- Century-Crofts. **GA DOE does not endorse any specific product specific in this current presentation.